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Topic Review (Newest First)

08-30-2016 03:26 PM

woogyboogy

Thank you all so very much!

08-28-2016 09:34 PM

CindyMDBecker

Wonderful news! Nice to hear from you ... love the picture! He is so handsome.

08-28-2016 07:38 PM

carmspack

keep up the good work.

wonderful to hear .

08-28-2016 07:08 PM

llombardo

I was wondering about you guys last week. So glad to hear the update and what a beautiful picture!

08-28-2016 05:57 PM

woogyboogy

Hello everyone,

I know it has been a long time since I've posted, and honestly I try not to visit this thread for obvious reasons. However, I do help people whenever I hear that their pups have contracted this horrible disease.

I just wanted to let everyone know that Loki is doing amazing. He is honestly the best dog my fiance and I could ever ask for, and he brings so much joy to our lives everyday. He is a fighter, and continues to amaze us every day.

Thank you all here at this forum for the support and help, because honestly I'm not sure I would be writing this post if it wasn't for all of you. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

01-02-2016 06:22 PM

LisaT

I believe that some dogs with the intestinal version may have beat it with the vaccine therapy, which I a completely different direction than Grooters takes. BUT I suspect that in most cases, the intestinal version is found too late. This organism is much nastier than a fungus it seems...

I agree, it's always a mystery why some get sick, and others don't. Some are more deficient than others

01-02-2016 06:15 PM

Magwart

One thing that the article doesn't mention is that there's a different form than skin lesions: this fungus also can attack the intestines. That version of the disease is almost always fatal unless you are very lucky and have it land in a part of the intestine that can be fully removed...which is rare.

I had a talk with our rescue's vet about one we had die of a pythium infection in his intestine last year (Louisiana). He was young (a year old), healthy, active, and caught the infection long after adoption--where he'd had good care. He had gone to swim a lot in a local park that has swimming pond for dogs. I think that's probably where he got it.

He came from a litter of 7 born in a public shelter, then raised in a foster home and adopted out around 12 weeks. All were healthy and happy puppies--no problems at all, despite the shelter birth. He died of pythium in the intestine at 12 months. The other 6 have remained healthy, as has mom.

By the time he showed symptoms (vomiting occasionally), a part of his duodenum was already black and dead. Worse, this fungus likes to find inoperable places in the intestines, making treatment impossible. We had an inconclusive ultra-sound for a suspected blockage, so the vet went in to do exploratory surgery...and that's how she found the pythium in the intestine. He had to be euthanized on the table.

The vet told me this fungus is common in the environment in our area. It's not rare at all. If you test any pond, you'll find it. What isn't known is why one dog that swims in a pond will get it while playing and swimming, but 100 other other dogs won't. It's very mysterious. Maybe he swam too soon after his monthly HW prevention or vaccination, maybe he had a hidden genetic variation that made him susceptible, maybe he just drank a lot of that pond water after a storm. Our vet studied with Dr. Grooters at LSU, one of the experts on this awful disease, and there just aren't any answers as to why some dogs get it internally, and others don't.

01-02-2016 05:46 PM

carmspack

there are many things now that are crazy and scary -- co-infections -- the basic "answer" will be to keep the immune system optimized which was part of this dogs recovery - two pronged attack , anti-parasitic and immune

Just a heads up in case anyone knows a dog with, or has had pythiosis. One university is trying to do some data collection, that would benefit all of us, so owners of affected dogs hould participate in the survey: https://ufl.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_eaGSpixZQXAEyA5

As far as I know, Loki is still doing well and is one of the lucky ones, thank goodness!

I sure hope so, that was so scary and crazy!!

01-02-2016 05:11 PM

LisaT

Just a heads up in case anyone knows a dog with, or has had pythiosis. One university is trying to do some data collection, that would benefit all of us, so owners of affected dogs hould participate in the survey: https://ufl.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_eaGSpixZQXAEyA5

As far as I know, Loki is still doing well and is one of the lucky ones, thank goodness!

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